Dreamer's Destiny
by dragoscilvio
Summary: After Mihawk's island was devoured by a dark creature and Zoro flung into a black abyss, our swordsman awakes in a town he's never seen before and set on an adventure that he could never have imagined. Who is this strange boy? What is that blade that was shaped like a key? What were heartless? And most importantly, would Zoro ever get home?
1. Prologue

"And no alcohol until you master the technique,"

Zoro groaned "But-!"

"No buts," Mihawk interrupted "you've hit a roadblock, and only six months after arriving. I'm disappointed in you, so it looks like I'm going to have to get tough."

With that Zoro stalked out of the castle, unknowing that the morning was about to take a drastic turn. It was quiet that day, Zoro remembered it quite clearly. He had stomped off into the jungle after Mihawk made his command, but oddly enough even the baboons were quiet refusing him the sparring session he had come out there specifically for. The swordsman gnashed his teeth in frustration. He wanted to fight something, to learn the technique his master had demanded and then sink himself into a well-earned sake laced nap. Zoro knew he had to tough out the next year and a half, it had already been six months but the man felt like it had been six years. He was grateful, immensely grateful, that Mihawk was training him to help him grow stronger, however, the swordsman felt the call of the ocean. The pull to travel, see the world and have adventures.

Before this, he had always longed for endless days of training. Uninterrupted and blissful as he pushed himself past the limits of his former capabilities, but now he suddenly found himself homesick for the crazy raucous chaos of his crew. Mihawk was right, he had hit a roadblock. He couldn't explain what had happened, but in recent weeks he had felt this unexplainable melancholy, that had nothing to do with Perona's ghosts, take hold of his soul. Zoro sighed, suddenly realizing that his aimless feet had taken him to the beach. The swordsman sat down on the small dunes with an audible thump, burying his two hands into mossy hair. He hated feeling like this. Hated not knowing how his crew was doing. He eventually found himself incomprehensibly wishing he could see them again, or regain some semblance of the joy he had when sailing across the Grand Line.

It was during this moment of sorrowful repose, that suddenly his world began to shake as tremors rocked the sand. The already gloomy skyline darkened, turning fierce and foreboding. The waters of the shore became ever more violent when a hurricane level windstorm kicked up, knocking the man across the sands and rolling him into the trees. Zoro clung to one such aged tree, gritting his teeth against the blast and spray of the ocean.

"Wha-What's going on?!" he grunted.

Another gust blew him away, wrenching his fingers free of their desperate grip. Zoro bellowed out a cry of surprise as he flew, steel grey eyes wide as he observed with a stunned gasp the devastation taking place on the island "No way,"

The island was, quite honestly, disappearing. Bits and pieces of it were flying up into the air dissolving into a pitch black funnel cloud with purple lightening interspersed throughout. Not only was the island being eaten by some kind of demonic cloud, but there was a creature, a large black monster, with a hole in its chest that was demolishing the castle. Zoro barely caught a glimpse of Mihawk charging the thing right before he hit a large clump of bushes. The man bolted to his feet, panting as his heart pounded in fear. How do islands just disappear?! However the swordsman didn't have time to think about that because all too soon he was surrounded by smaller cobalt insect like creatures. They moved in a jerky skittering motion that made Zoro's skin crawl and he took an involuntary step back as his face pulled into a grimace.

Drawing his swords, Zoro swung at the creatures his jaw clenching in frustration when the blades passed through the monsters, not even phasing them slightly. They assessed him with glowing yellow eyes, pausing for only a millisecond before rushing the moss headed man. Zoro swung his blades with deadly precision, but they were like mist, impervious to his steel all the while the swordsman felt that their claws were all too real. He bit back a strangled yelp as blood dripped down his arm staining the forest floor below.

"How do I kill these things?!" Zoro snarled before an oddly squeaky voice broke through his mind.

_A mere mortal weapon made by human hands is not capable of defeating monsters such as these._

"Huh?" Zoro straightened up, casting his gaze about looking for the source of the strange voice "Who's there?!"

_One who would help you, if you will accept?_

"Great, perfect!" the swordsman grunted "Anytime would be great!"

_Merely reach out with your heart and call forth the blade. Then you will be given the power you desire._

"Reach out with my heart?" Zoro scoffed before he was once again sliced by the claws of another insect "Ok, sounds simple enough."

Zoro closed his eyes focusing within, but every time he felt something akin to what the voice was talking about the monsters would claw at him, breaking his concentration "Hey!" he finally bellowed "can't you see I'm trying to reach out with my heart here?!"

The voice wasn't giving any helpful hints, so Zoro grit his teeth and ran hoping to find a secluded space where he could call out this power the weird voice was talking about. Trees whipped by, branches cutting his cheeks and arms as the swordsman pelted though the underbrush. Finally he reached the castle, or what was left of it. The man gaped at the sheer carnage wreaked on the ancient building seeing only one tower and spiral of stairs left standing. There on that tower Mihawk did battle with the towering creature, but seemed to be having the same struggle that Zoro had. His sword had no effect, and for the first time in decades the world's greatest swordsman felt helpless.

Zoro watched his mentor, sudden hopelessness overtaking him at the stark reality that not even Mihawk was capable of defeating this fierce enemy.

_Do not give into the darkness! _The voice commanded sternly _Reach out with your heart, release the power sleeping inside!_

"HOW?!" Zoro screamed "I have no idea how to accomplish what you're talking about!"

_Listen with your heart, just as you have felt the soul of the earth, so too is there a deeper voice within your heart. You are one of the chosen, just focus!_

Zoro answered the voice with a savage growl before closing his eyes and falling into a meditative stance. The man focused on his breaths, allowed his heartbeat to slow, and then like a spark within the gloom of midnight he saw it. It burned pure and bright, steady like as a flame and pulsing with every beat of his heart. A name burst on the tip of his tongue and out his mouth calling forth his weapon in a confident bellow.

"_Dreamer's Destiny!"_

Steel grey eyes widened as a flash of light exploded in front of him in the form of three blades set in a triangle. They were beautiful, and their shape was not what one would normally associate with a sword. In fact, they almost resembled…keys.

One was decorated in green gems and the silver intricately woven to resemble wingtips on the end. Within the chain link in the middle, metal calligraphy spelled out the word 'Dream'. This blade flew to Zoro's dominant hand. The next blade was black gold, the tip of it decorated with a devil's wing and covered in crimson gem stones. The chain link down the center of this one read 'Will', this blade came to Zoro's right hand. The third was the most beautiful. Yellow and white gold braided together, the hilt resembling a rapier so to make room for Zoro's mouth, and at the end of the blade was a luminous sun. The word emblazoned on this weapon was simply 'Destiny'. This one flew towards Zoro's face, waiting in midair like an obedient dog until the man gripped it in his teeth.

The swordsman looked down at them in befuddlement "What are these?"

_Keyblades,_ the voice supplied _the only weapon capable of destroying the creatures you now face, creatures known as Heartless. _

"Heartless?" Zoro wondered aloud.

_Yes, the giant is one such heartless_

"So…I just use these 'key blades' against it?"

_Yes, you now have the power to defeat it_

"Right,"

Zoro required very little further prompting, and immediately strode forward to where his master fought "Mihawk!"

"Roronoa," the older man barked "get your useless butt over here and help kill this thing!"

The moss headed swordsman sprinted to his mentor's side slicing at the leg and hand of the monster, smirking when it gave a satisfying screech as it attempted to bat them away. The duo fought back to back, Mihawk attempting to fend off attacks but groaning in frustration when even his blade passed through harmlessly. The yellow eyed man glanced at his pupil, jealousy darkening his keen gaze at the obvious damage Zoro was doing to the creatures both large and small.

"Roronoa," he bellowed over the chaos of battle "what are those ridiculous blades you're wielding,"

Zoro sliced a heartless just before it caught Mihawk in the face "The kind of ridiculous blades that just saved your butt!"

"Touché," Mihawk smirked "However is there a chance that I may use one?"

The moss head shrugged, tossing the black blade to his mentor "Sure,"

Mihawk grinned preparing to swing his new blade only to give a startled yelp when the thing disappeared in a flash of sparks and reappeared in Zoro's hand once again "Rather picky, aren't they?"

Zoro merely spread his arms wide "Don't look at me, this is the first time I've ever even seen them, much less used them. I don't know how they work!"

Hawkeye merely shrugged in return and whirled around, ready to continue their assault when he noticed the ground beneath Zoro's feet begin to give way "Roronoa!"

The man leapt forward, grabbing his pupil's shirt and dragging him away even as he propelled himself over the edge "Mihawk!"

Zoro fell onto his stomach dropping his silver blade, one hand gripping his master's hand even as he cried out in pain from the heartless tearing at his back "Mihawk, hold on!"

The man gave Zoro a grim smile, one that he knew all too well, one that he himself had worn in battle when he knew that survival was minimal at best. It was the smile a warrior wore when death was near and hope was no longer their friend. "No, Roronoa," he said through gritted teeth "I am useless to you in this fight. This world is done for and disappearing at an ever increasing rate, even I can say that the end is near. Yet the strange weapons you wield somehow protect you, you may yet have a chance to survive. Do not let my sacrifice be in vain, defeat this creature, once and for all!"

"No Mihawk, we will face this thing together!"

"Do not be stupid!" Mihawk spat "now go!"

With that Mihawk forced Zoro to let go of his hand, allowing himself to be swallowed by the darkness and Zoro found himself screaming into the writhing whirlwind "Mihawk, NO!"

Zoro rolled over onto his back, and regained his footing before pinning the large monster with a deadly glare brimming with bloodlust "…Die…"

The swordsman surged forward, bringing his new blades into battle with fatal precision. One cut across the legs, two more on the stomach, countless others onto its hand. Zoro knew what he was doing, and this thing certainly deserved a firsthand experience in his deadly craft. One giant hand swept down, but the swordsman dodged it with a nimble summersault slicing the limb even as he went. Whirling around in his razor sharp dance Zoro continued hacking away at the mindless heartless, seeing that it was not intelligent but merely using brute force. Zoro grinned, he'd fought many strong idiots this one would be just as easy. So with one last bellowing cry Zoro jumped onto the arm, using it as a bridge, running up so to reach the shoulder and using his blades in their deadly triad cut the creature's head.

The heartless gave a screech as it reeled backwards sending Zoro flying back to the sand and disappeared into a puff of black smoke. Zoro looked around, his eyes wide as he saw the continued damage to his island "Why isn't it stopping?!"

_It isn't going to stop, the end is already upon you._

"What do you mean, the end? Tell me what's happening?!"

_No time! Your world is falling into darkness and you will go with it if you do not move quickly._

"What do you mean falling into darkness?" Zoro felt his heart freeze in stark terror and concern for his nakama "What about my crew?"

_I'm sorry, your world…it's gone. Everyone you know has already been swallowed by the darkness._

"No…" Zoro fell to his knees barely registering the cracking of the tower as it was assimilated by the cloud "My crew…they're gone?"

_Do not despair, there is still a chance to save your world._

The moss headed man's eyes snapped up, determination filling their gaze though sorrow still overwhelmed his features "How?"

_Follow my instruction and you will join those who will help you on your quest._

"Then what do I do?!"

_Jump._

"Jump?" the swordsman glanced around noticing he was standing on only a small spit of sand hanging in midair, even the ocean was gone replaced by this horrifying nothingness.

_Yes, __jump._

"JUMP?!"

_Jump now!_

"Aw man," Zoro looked down at the pitch black abyss before gritting his teeth and closing his eyes "here goes nothing!"

With a groan riding on a growl the swordsman leapt into the darkness holding the strange blades in front of him like a shield. Darkness swallowed him but was kept at bay by a luminescent silver light forming around Zoro, sending him careening through the void much like Kuma's Devil fruit power had. Zoro closed his eyes, sorrow filling his heart at the loss of his world and most of all his crew. The voice had told him he had a chance of saving them, but he wasn't sure if he could. From now on the man could only rely on himself, and the hope that the voice spoke true.

"I will see my nakama again," Zoro promised himself "I will save them and we'll sail to the New World. I promise."


	2. Traverse Town 1

Zoro awoke in the middle of an open air restaurant, the scent of wine and food reaching his nostrils making them flare and his stomach grumble. He was unsure of where he was, the last thing he remembered he was fighting that giant…thing on Mihawk's island. Was any of that real? The swordsman didn't know. If it was then that meant he was the last of his world, all alone and doomed to never see his crewmates again. His heart gave a violent pang at the thought and Zoro sniffed back the stinging in his eyes. They couldn't be gone, they were too strong or too stubborn they had to have survived, just like him.

Then another thought struck him. What if it was all just a bad hangover? He had woken up in bars before, and it wasn't really all that rare that Mihawk would take him off the island for a change of pace in training, and then he would visit the local tavern. Maybe that's all it was. They were just training on another island and Mihawk was waiting for him back at the hotel. But…he didn't recognize this bar, and they usually went to the same set of islands, Mihawk never ventured far from his gloomy home when he had the wanted pirate in tow. It would set too many people talking and they didn't need any rumors being spread about Mihawk training the demon of the East Blue. So if he wasn't back home…where was he?!

"Hey there, sonny," an elderly voice queried "are you alright?"

The swordsman jerked up from where he lay, steel grey eyes casting about for some kind of anchor that would reassure him it had all been just a horrible nightmare "Wh-Where am I?"

"You're in Traverse Town," the old man replied, reaching down so to drag Zoro to his feet and direct him towards a chair "for some strange reason this seems to be the place that all folks whose world has fallen into darkness tend to land. My own world was swallowed up, I assume you have the same story to tell too, eh?"

Zoro looked down at his hands, plopping down into the chair eyes wide with disbelief "So that really happened," he murmured "this all isn't one giant hangover?"

The elderly man threw back his head with a laugh "No, I'm afraid not son."

The moss headed teen leaned forward, burying his face in his hands with a groan "Then…my world, it's really gone?"

"Yes, it would appear so." The older man nodded "There is, after all, no other explanation for your suddenly appearing out of thin air to crash onto the ground."

Zoro sighed "I don't even know how to comprehend that, much less decide what to do next."

His new friend nodded sympathetically "On that my boy, I can only say, in times like this keep your eyes open. You'll see that the answer you're looking for will come to you, if you're patient."

With one last consoling pat on the shoulder, the elderly man stood up and made his way out of the restaurant leaving Zoro to his thoughts "Be patient," the man scoffed "the answer will come to you. Like I'm dumb enough to just wait here for a stupid sign? Whatever."

The swordsman stood to his feet, his features a dark cloud of sorrow, confusion and dare he admit it, even fear. What was he to do now? His world had essentially been destroyed, and the stupid little voice that got him into this mess was being frustratingly silent. Once again the piercing sting of loss stabbed his heart, reminding him that not only was his world destroyed but the only family he had ever really known and truly cared for was also gone with it.

He would never hear Luffy's deranged laugh again. Never sit in the sunshine and nap on the deck with Chopper sitting in his lap reading an oversized medical book. He wouldn't have the challenge of defeating Robin in a game of chess, or listen to one of Usopp's ridiculously over embellished stories during dinner. His mornings from now on would be devoid of Brook's violin as an alarm clock and his days would no longer include suspicious explosions coming from a certain cyborg's workshop. There would be no Nami to pester him about a nonexistent debt and no cook to scream at him for being a lazy moss head all so he could instigate a crazy but incredibly fun sparring session.

In short…he was alone and exiled to a world that he didn't have the slightest link to much less recognize. Everything seemed so foreign to him it only made the gnawing pit of homesickness worse.

Zoro stumbled out of the restaurant and out into the main square until he had come to a stop underneath a lamppost across from stone steps leading up to what looked like stores. The green haired man felt his shoulders heave as he fought off the waves of despair threatening to overtake him. He leaned his forehead against the cool metal of the lamppost, his golden earrings tinkling as he bit his bottom lip to force it to stop quivering as he strove to maintain his usual stoic façade. He would not cry! He was fine! People lose their homes and their families every day, he could move on past this. The voice even said there was a chance he could save his world, which in turn should mean his nakama…right?

"But why, why would it choose a kid like you?"

Zoro heard this, the voice making him look up at the top of the stairs to see a man probably not much older than himself. His clothes were simple but cool. Jeans with multiple belts, white t-shirt covered with a short sleeved leather jacket adorned with a crest of a red lion's head. That same crest hung on a silver chain around the man's neck. However Zoro wasn't interested in his clothes, it was the tone of voice that garnered his interest, it was the same tone you hear before a fight and Zoro couldn't deny his interest in what kind of warriors this world boasted.

"Hey!" another voice bawled, a young teen voice barely beyond the cusp of childhood "What's that supposed to mean?!"

The other man merely waved away the boy's indignant question "Never mind, now, let's see that keyblade."

Keyblade?! Zoro straightened up, his full attention on the duo. One of them had a keyblade? So that meant maybe they had heard the voice too, or even lost their world? His voice had told him he would meet others who would help him on his quest to restore his world, maybe this was the guy!

"What?" the kid gasped "there's no way you're getting this!"

"Alright then, have it your way."

The cool silky voice broke through Zoro's shock from the revelation at someone else wielding a keyblade, making the swordsman jump to attention. Especially since there was a fireball coming not too far behind said statement.

Zoro whirled around to see the older man pull a sword unlike anything he had ever seen before. It was a blade to be sure, but also…a gun? Strange, but the idea thrilled Zoro at what kind of challenge such a sword could offer. It appeared the man was battling against another opponent, but the second swordsman was nowhere to be seen. Zoro focused his gaze, standing on tip toe to see over the brick ledge going up the stairway and higher into town. He could see a mop of disheveled spiky brown hair. The swordsman couldn't help but chuckle at how it reminded him of Luffy, but still the face was obscured by various objects getting in the way.

The man slashed his sword, causing the shorter opponent to jump backwards with an impressive flip. Whoever this guy was fighting they had guts, though their swordplay was sloppy. Finally the first fighter paused summoning an impossible ball of fire in his hands before shooting it at his dueling partner. Zoro's mouth dropped open, did they have Devil Fruit here too? However his shock over the extremely odd person who was somehow able to shoot fireballs was forestalled when he finally got his first good look at the second fighter. It was a child, no older than thirteen or fourteen. He was dressed in a red jumpsuit of sorts that stopped right at his knee similar to capris pants. A blue belt and white jacket along with white gloves accessorized his attire, but certainly did nothing to hide his youth. The baby fat cheeks, childish pout and wide innocent blue eyes showed everything you needed to know on just how old this kid was. But the most outrageous thing was what the kid was using to fight. His sword was shaped like a _key_, like his blades were.

Zoro wasn't one to interfere with other's fights, but something about this kid, his weapon and the fact he was fighting an obviously more experienced fighter made him decide to do just that. However, it appeared that he didn't have to, for just as he was moving away from the lamppost, the child ducked into a roll before springing up and neatly disarmed his opponent. Zoro smirked at the kid's accomplishment, despite being a complete novice and stumbling through the basic footwork of swordplay he somehow managed to overpower and disarm a master.

The older man grit his teeth in frustration, clenching a leather clad fist "There's no way I can lose!"

"Yeah," the younger one slurred exhaustion overtaking his thin frame "well now you're…you're gonna…gonna…"

Immediately he fell backwards into a faint, and Zoro found this an appropriate time to step forward. "Leave the kid alone," he growled "he beat you fair and square, even despite the difference in skill and experience."

The other man looked up at Zoro, assessing him even as a young woman ran up behind them "Aw," she cooed teasingly "you're slipping Leon."

Leon merely scoffed "I went easy on him," immediately shooting Zoro a dark look when the swordsman snickered at the obvious lie.

"Anyway," Leon continued "things are worse than we thought, a lot worse."

"Guess we better take him now while he's sleeping," the girl suggested walking over and preparing to stoop down but was cut off by Zoro's bulk.

"You're not taking him anywhere," the moss haired man snarled "I'm not going to stand by and let some random strangers kidnap a kid after he's passed out from a fight."

"Don't worry we're not going to hurt him," Leon muttered.

"Oh yeah, you made that real clear when you shot a stinking fireball at the kid!" Zoro shot back "third degree burns just gush friendship and trust."

The girl snorted before patting Zoro's well defined bicep "Don't worry, we really won't hurt him. Leon's just a socially awkward meanie, but we need him so he can help us restore our world. He has a keyblade and that's super important."

"So you're taking him just because he has a keyblade?"

The girl nodded with a cheerful "Yup!"

"Looks like I'm coming with you then," Zoro smirked triumphantly satisfied as Leon's glare deepened followed by a very unmanly pout "because I have a keyblade."

"Oh really?" Leon mused strolling up to Zoro in a very Sanji like way before invading Zoro's personal space by going nose to nose with the man "Prove it."

The moss haired swordsman merely shrugged "Alright,"

Focusing inwards the way the voice had told him to, Zoro once again reached out for the strange yet powerful light source glowing within his heart. Just as before a flash of light exploded in front of him and his blades each found their respective hands (or teeth) before the man was standing there fully armed "Their name is Dreamer's Destiny apparently," he explained around his mouthful "but I don't mind them, their power is beyond anything I've felt before and they're light despite the damage they can inflict."

Leon stood with his mouth hanging open, his gaze completely befuddled before he could only stammer "Th-Thr-THREE? How do you even manage using three swords?!"

"It's a fighting technique I invented and developed myself," Zoro stated proudly before dismissing his swords "now, are we going to just stand here and yap some more, or are we going to go someplace where you can explain to me where I am, what happened to my world and what on earth is a keyblade?!"


	3. Traverse Town 2

Leon leaned against the wall, the girl Yuffie watching the kid as he slept. Zoro sat on the other side of the room carefully cleaning his katana, his eyes serious as he ran his fingers expertly over the blades searching for any imperfection. Leon observed Zoro, admitting a grudging respect for a man who obviously was a master swordsman and cared deeply for the proper maintenance of his weaponry.

"Those are nice blades," the man finally murmured, "you care for them well."

Silver eyes shot up to meet Leon's, answering him with a small grunt "Thanks."

"So I'm guessing you're a warrior?"

Zoro nodded, his skilled fingers reassembling the blade before putting the small maintenance box away back in his coat "Yeah" he nodded "and one day I'm going to be the world's greatest swordsman. At least I was, until…"

Once again Zoro had to bite back the palpable wave of grief nearly overwhelming his senses before clearing his throat and giving a firm shake of his head "I will be," he reaffirmed "once I get my world back. The voice that gave me the keyblades told me that if I go with some other people on a quest I could restore my world, and that's exactly what I'm going to do!"

Leon nodded in understanding, a soft smirk at the man's determination lighting his features "Good," the brunet replied "the kid is going to need someone like you to help him out. It isn't going to be easy, restoring the worlds, but if you're there I think that will give the extra push we need to victory."

Zoro remained silent, unsure how to answer the man, but he wouldn't need to as the child on the bed slowly started coming to, his mouth mumbling incoherently. Yuffie immediately bent down, her face a mask of concern for the young teen "Hey, you ok?"

The boy shook his head, a pitiful attempt at clearing his foggy brain "I guess,"

The girl's soft smile diminished, turning serious "Those creatures that attacked you are after the keyblade, but it's your heart they really want because you wield the keyblade."

"Yeah," the boy looked up with bleary eyes a happy smile lighting his face "I'm so glad you're ok Kairi,"

"Kairi? Who are you talking about?" Yuffie scoffed "I'm the great ninja Yuffie!"

Leon snorted, in a rare show of humor muttering under his breath "Great ninja?"

The boy's eyes widened as clarity suddenly lit their ocean blue depths before jumping back with a gasp, one hand absently rubbing his head. Yuffie merely assessed the boy with a bemused gaze then turned to face the brunet swordsman "I think you may have overdone it Squall,"

"That's Leon." Said man growled.

The boy regarded the person who had just previously been attacking him, suspicion lurking behind blue eyes his small frame tense in case of attack before he was once again jolted by a sudden revelation. Casting his eyes about the room in slight panic before they came to rest on his weapon leaning casually against the wall, Sorasighed. "The keyblade."

"Yeah," Yuffie grimaced as she turned so to pace back and forth "we had to get it away from you to shake off those creatures, it turns out that's how they were tracking you."

"It was the only way to conceal your heart from them," Leon continued crossing his arms and shifting his weight so to look nonthreatening "but it won't work for long."

However any attempt at putting the child at ease seemed to backfire when the older man continued "Still…hard to believe that you of all people are a chosen one."

Leon picked up the keyblade and gave it an experimental swing, not reacting when it automatically disappeared in a shower of sparks and reappeared in the boy's hand "Well," Leon muttered unhappily "I suppose beggars can't be choosers."

Zoro merely smirked from where he sat. He had a sneaking suspicion that this Leon guy was jealous of the squirt, in fact, he'd even be willing to bet money with Nami of all people that the brunet swordsman wanted to inherit a keyblade. However, for whatever reason, fate has decided him unworthy. The moss headed man rolled his eyes and gave a gentle shrug. It's not like it was any of his business anyways. If things were going the way they appeared to be, then Zoro was about to embark on a possibly lengthy quest with this child to restore his and other worlds. He didn't particularly care, the kid looked like he could take care of himself, just judging by how well he handled the impromptu duel with Leon. Maybe they will meet strong enemies, and at the very least Zoro could give the kid a few pointers on how to improve his fighting style. No loss for him, to be honest he just wanted to get on with the quest so he could go back home and get back to training with Mihawk.

"Why don't you start making sense?!" the boy suddenly demanded, blue lightening flashing behind his eyes "What's going on here?"

This made Zoro actually chuckle; well, at least he wasn't as dense as Luffy "I agree with the kid, it's about time we get some real answers."

The kid let out a minute gasp, his blue eyes darting over to where Zoro sat, noticing him for the first time "Who are you?"

"The name's Roronoa, Zoro," the swordsman said with a nod "you can just call me Zoro though. I saw your fight, you're pretty good for a kid."

"I'm not just a kid," the boy pouted before heaving a sigh "My name's Sora, are you from this world too?"

"Nah, I'm from somewhere else, I fell here when my world was eaten by a giant black monster," Zoro returned his silver eyes darkening with grief at the memory.

"Mine too,"

That small statement tore at Zoro's heart, so many emotions dwelt within those two words, the man couldn't help the swell of protectiveness towards the boy "At any rate," the moss headed man coughed before turning to the older man "you gonna start talking, or are you going to keep doing your best impression of a statue?"

Leon sighed "So I'm guessing you already know that there are other worlds out there, right?"

"I guess," the boy shrugged.

"Sure," Zoro grumbled.

"Well, technically that's supposed to be a secret," Yuffie chuckled nervously.

"That's right," Leon nodded "they've remained secret because they were never connected, until now that is, but everything changed after the heartless arrived."

Zoro opened his mouth to ask what that was, but Sora beat him to the punch "The heartless?" the boy queried.

"The ones that attacked you, remember?" Yuffie answered.

"Before Leon did, that is," Zoro smirked snickering in triumph at the other man's sudden vicious pout "so what's a heartless anyway?"

"Those without hearts," Leon supplied.

The swordsman merely scoffed "Thank you Captain obvious, a more detailed explanation please?"

"The darkness in people's hearts," Yuffie picked back up "that's what attracts them,"

Leon nodded grimly "And there is darkness in every heart.

"Well that doesn't really answer-,"

Zoro was abruptly cut off by Yuffie suddenly asking "Hey, do you know someone named Ansem?"

"Ansem?" Sora echoed.

"Flighty bunch this crew," Zoro grumbled, unhappy that he had been largely ignored. He still didn't know exactly what a heartless was in the first place "you could at least answer a question before switching the topic."

Leon shot Zoro a stern glare, commanding him to be silent however, the swordsman was unfazed merely responding by petulantly sticking out his tongue. The man sighed, shaking his head before answering Sora's question "Ansem was studying the heartless, he recorded everything in a detailed report whose pages have been lost, scattered across worlds."

"Great," Zoro scoffed "the only thing that has the answers we want is lost in space. What, you expect us to find them all?"

Leon shook his head "No, we have suspicions that King Mickey has already begun the search. Our job, according to the letter he sent, was to locate the key."

"Or in this case, the key_blade_." Yuffie smirked.

"So…this is the key?" Sora murmured lifting his weapon to eye level.

"Exactly!" Yuffie nodded excitedly.

"Wait, wait, wait," the green haired swordsman cut in, waving a hand in the air so to garner attention "what's so special about these funky looking blades? I get that they're the only things capable of cutting those little buggers, but why is it that you think these things are important?"

Leon closed his eyes, folding his arms as he did so "The heartless have great fear of the keyblade. That's why they'll keep coming after you, no matter what."

"Can't you ever give a straight answer to a simple question?!" Zoro shrieked effectively ignored by everyone in the room.

"Well I didn't ask for this." Sora's blue eyes widened, further exhibiting his fear and innocence.

The ninja merely shrugged her shoulders "The Keyblade chooses its master, and it chose you."

"So, tough luck," Leon waved away as he walked over to lean against the wall.

Zoro ground his teeth together, once again looking at the thirteen year old, his heart squeezing at the thought that such a young child is suddenly caught up in a horribly dangerous situation. The boy reminded him somewhat of Chopper, his big eyes and wide grin with the air of childish naivety that unconsciously made you want to protect him. The main difference being of course that Sora wasn't a fully trained medical doctor with access to drugs capable of powering him up to insane levels. Sure, his sword skills were impressive, for his age, but they wouldn't keep him alive on the battlefield! He was practically a sitting duck!

"How did all of this happen?" the boy in question moaned "I remember being in my room…"

The blue eyes grew distant as memory resurfaced sending Sora flying to his feet with a horrified gasp "Wait a minute!" he cried "What happened to my home? My island?! Riku…Kairi…"

Soroa's voice faded as hopelessness sunk into his gaze, causing the proud shoulders to droop. Zoro couldn't give him an answer, though he desperately wanted to. However, he himself was still asking that very same question, and no one had given him the benefit of a logical explanation.

"You know what," Leon spoke from his spot by the door, "I really don't know."

"Oh yeah, that's a great answer." The swordsman huffed making the older Brunet cast his piercing gaze across the room to where Zoro sat.

"What, am I supposed to lie?"

"This kid just lost his home, his family, everything!" Zoro snarled as he climbed to his feet "For that matter, so have I! We've been waiting for a solid answer on just what happened and how we ended up here, and endured your literal fountain of useless knowledge and when you finally decide to give a straight answer on something that matters, you choose 'I don't know'?!"

Leon felt heat rising in his collar, a spike of anger making him dizzy but somehow held the fiery torrent in check "We've all lost our homes, and our families." He replied in dead monotone "We all are forced to pick up our lives and start from absolutely nothing. I don't know what happened to my world, and I've resigned myself to the fact I may never see it again, I suggest you do the same."

"Heh," Zoro smirked, something between a scoff and a snarl whispering from between his lips "I might, if I were a spineless, emo worm like you."

Leon clenched his teeth at the obvious insult but his ire was interrupted as Zoro continued "However I come from a world where I'm a member of a Pirate Crew that chases their dreams, no matter how impossible. In fact, you could even say the word impossible isn't in our vocabulary. My captain does the impossible every day, and I've taken down punks that would eat you for breakfast. So go ahead and stay here sniveling about the heartless and resigning yourself to never going back home, but me? I'm going out there and I'm gonna beat up the guy responsible for all this, just like my captain would, and then…I'm going home."

A leather clad fist closed in on itself, Leon's teeth grating as he struggled to maintain his composure. He was trying to respect the keyblade's chosen, he really was, but between this stupid kid and the obnoxious jerk Leon found his control was slipping at a frightful rate.

"Uh, hey," Yuffie chirped from the bed, trying to break the tension that exploded in the room "I've heard that the keyblade can open all sorts of locks. You should try it, you know, next time you find a locked door or something."

"Really?" Sora replied his features bright but strained, accepting the distraction for all it was worth "that's great, I'll remember that!"

Leon however was having none of it "The heartless are going to come after you," he reiterated "you'd better prepare yourself."

"Prepare myself?"

"To fight for your life, are you ready?"

Another dark cloud hung over Zoro's features at the enormity of the quest being thrust upon this child but was forestalled at Sora's soft but confident answer "I'm ready,"

Leon nodded "Alright, Yuffie let's go join Aerith, she should be there by now with our other visitors."

"LEON!"

The men (and boy) in the room followed Yuffie's frantic finger as an armored heartless suddenly appeared. The older Brunet darted past the ninja, hitting the thing with his sword hard enough to send it out the window "Yuffie, go!"

Zoro summoned his three swords, keeping a wary eye on Sora as the boy hefted his own blade with his skinny arms "You ready?"

Sora stilled at the soft query. The tone holding none of the commanding disdain that Leon's had but rather a caring protectiveness that promised to watch his back no matter the trouble "Yeah," the boy nodded giving Zoro a bright grin "I am."

"Good," the moss headed man replied "because it's about to get hairy."

"SORA!" Leon bellowed from his spot by the window "Let's go!"

The boy took off like a shot, following Leon out the window and into the abandoned alley, Zoro grumbling behind them "We're coming, we're coming, you bossy, sour faced robot. Sheesh, who stuck a stick up your butt? Because I'm willing to bet it's sideways."

**Yeah…I didn't expect Zoro and Leon to not get along, I wanted them to be chummy in their own stoic, swordsman way. But they insisted on butting heads because apparently they don't play well with others except for those they CHOOSE to play well with.**


	4. Traverse Town 3

Zoro leapt from the window, grimacing as he was already surrounded by the odd creatures within milliseconds of hitting earth.

They were somewhere behind the hotel, in an abandoned alley or storage area for the local businesses. He could see a canal or possibly drainage ditch not five feet away, though it's purpose, beyond aesthetic reasons, Zoro couldn't begin to fathom. His new best friend Leon was already pummeling his way through the mosh pit of writhing obsidian bodies, silver sword flashing as he created a path.

"We need to find the boss," the older Brunet yelled "don't worry about the small fry!"

Zoro quirked an eyebrow, smirking as he did so, as Leon took off showing no intention to help clean up this mess. Shaking his head sorrowfully, the moss headed man turned to his young charge. Sora was currently fending off several armored heartless at once, failing in his endeavor to leave them behind and follow Mr. Bossy-pants as various more popped up from behind boxing him in. Rolling his silver eyes, Zoro reached over the monster's heads and plucked Sora out of the middle of the gang up (sparing a moment to briefly marvel at how light he was), before placing the nearly weightless child at his side

"Hey, do you eat anything at all?" the swordsman grunted, half surprised with himself that he even cared "If you want to survive long enough to accomplish our goal you'd better bulk up and get meat on those skinny bones of yours."

Sora sent the man an indignant pout, which was alarmingly similar to Chopper's, and the effect was more endearing than intended. Zoro found himself snorting in amusement "Don't worry, I'll help you train so that you can take out punks like this in your sleep. Then you won't have to listen to me nag you, deal?"

Blue eyes wary with slight distrust and muddied in confused indecision paused, watching as Zoro defended them and in turn Zoro kept half an eye on the boy, watching a he considered the offer. Sora noted how every stroke of this strange man's blade was decisive, not a single movement wasted, and he was capable of taking out several heartless in one swing. Zoro could tell that Sora wasn't sure if he could trust him, they had only just met. However, Leon seemed okay to the kid despite being an emotionless jerk and Zoro had shown him nothing but kindness since they had been formally introduced. He even defended Sora, saying it was unfair that they just throw this weird, new and incredibly heavy responsibility on him.

The decision to trust Zoro enough to learn how to use a sword caused the once solemn sapphire gaze to suddenly brighten into a blinding ocean blue accompanied by a sincere grin of happiness "Deal!"

Zoro nodded, an odd feeling of warm pride fluttering in his chest at the courage of a boy thrown into a truly odd situation "Good, now, first lesson. Leon is an idiot."

Sora giggled, one hand covering his mouth cutely, making the larger swordsman fight back the urge to chuckle as he continued "Lesson number two, it's never a good idea to go straight to the boss. Believe it or not the small fry give you a good chance to learn from your mistakes and get valuable battle experience. Fight every opponent you can, and then once the area is clean, you can beat up the boss as you go."

"Got it!"

"Good, so what do we do?" the man smirked blocking an attack and sending the heartless flying.

Sora looked around, before stepping confidently out from Zoro's side "We beat them all up, no exceptions!"

"Exactly!"

As one the duo sprang forward, battling the waves of heartless within the alley, Zoro keeping an eye on the kid while Sora did his best to fight while watching Zoro and trying to copy his moves. The green haired swordsman allowed a laugh to bubble from his throat, the boy had unintentionally and in a remarkably short amount of time captured his affection. Whether it was paternal or brotherly, Zoro didn't know, but there was something about this child that begged his heart to connect with him and form an unbreakable bond.

Giving a helpless shrug, but not really regretting a thing, Zoro made his decision. He will go on this crazy quest and get his world back, but on the way he will train this scrap of a kid and turn him into a warrior capable of shaking his own set of stars.

Eventually the two fought their way until not even the smallest black speck floated in the air, leaving Sora grinning up at Zoro, his face beaming with pride "We did it!"

Zoro simply gave a nod "Yeah, we did."

The boy pumped his fist, swinging the keyblade in what he assumed was a cool pose "Alright, now let's go find the boss!"

Scrambling away with unfathomable energy, the boy leapt at a nearby wooden door labeled clearly "Second District". Turning the knob Sora leaned backwards so to quickly grab one of Zoro's hands and tug him through "Come on Zoro, let's go!"

…..

Sora sighed; he had no idea where Leon went. Unfortunately, Zoro wasn't much help either. The guy had gotten them lost more than ten times within the space of five minutes. The young man groaned. Some hero he turned out to be, barely even started on an epic adventure and he was already a lost cause, literally.

"Um," Sora practically whispered, his unease dripping off every syllable "Zoro? I think we're lost."

The man in question closed his eyes, tilting his head back and breathing through his nose as if to stave off a headache. He grit his teeth, grinding them together before giving a pained grunt that seemed to have been torn from the depths of his soul "Yeah, I think we are too."

Sora thought back, remembering that some screaming passerby had said something about a monster in the Third District, but he wasn't sure where the Third District was, much less how to get there. Zoro wasn't much help either although the man kept insisting that the town was moving on him. Sora had only sighed in response. Towns don't move, at least this one doesn't. That he was aware of at least.

"Um," the boy scanned the area, sweeping his ocean blue gaze left and right until alighting on the clue he desperately sought. A street sign, "Look!" Sora grinned in relief, grabbing Zoro by the wrist so to ensure that the older man followed properly "it's a sign that says the Third district is down this alleyway!"

Zoro rolled his eyes but followed anyway. The young boy reveled the feeling of strength that he could feel in the man's hands. Even though he didn't admit it, Sora was terrified. His island had just been destroyed, his best friends taken and now he had a group of people demanding he save all the worlds? He was only fourteen years old, what could he possibly do that could save everyone? He couldn't even beat Riku in a race, much less a fight. What difference could a Keyblade make on his skills? What if he wasn't good enough?

Almost in response to this distressing thought, Sora's fingers tightened on Zoro's hand, even as the smallest hiccup of a sob burst through clenched, trembling lips. The young teen felt his fellow Keyblade wielder stop, tugging him to a halt as well, but Sora didn't dare turn and face him. Not with the shame of tears running down the once brave face. Pearly teeth captured the quivering bottom lip, even as he made a fist with his free hand as he fought against any more sobs.

Behind him Zoro was silent, and Sora could only imagine the annoyed disgust that the warrior must be feeling to be saddled with a crybaby like him. Sora wanted to let him off the hook and tell him he didn't have to come with, but he didn't want to lose the closest thing to a big brother that he had right now. That comfort, of having someone older to help carry the burden, was something Sora desperately needed, but he didn't want to hold the man against his will either. What should he do?

"Hey,"

Sora flinched at the soft tone, hunching his shoulders against the question lurking behind the words "Sorry," he sniffled "just getting my bearings, the Third District is right ahead."

…..

Zoro quirked an eyebrow, the kid refused to turn around and face him. Heaving a sigh, the nineteen year old tugged the skinny arm, forcing the kid to whirl around, his bright blue eyes wide in surprise. Shyly glancing up, Sora ducked his head in a vain attempt to hide the last few droplets of moisture clinging to his eyelashes. He looked so much like Chopper in that moment Zoro felt his heart give an audible crack. Thinking of Chopper actually gave the man an idea, and kneeling down, he placed a large calloused hand on the spikey head.

"It's not a bad thing to feel scared or cry you know," he murmured softly "everyone does, even me."

The forlorn look on the boy's face melted away to one of cynical disbelief causing Zoro to give a warm chuckle "Yes, I have cried. A few times in fact. One to make a promise to my rival and her father, and the second when I made another promise to my captain."

The ocean blue gaze fell back to the cobblestones, the child's face shrouded in shadow, "But have you ever been scared?"

Zoro pursed his lips in thought at the soft query "Yes," he finally answered, his tone softer than before "there was a time when I thought that my captain would die. I have already lost one best friend; I couldn't imagine losing another."

Sora peeked up from under long brown eyelashes "What happened?"

"I offered my life in exchange for his."

Sora's face fell, his complexion growing pale as the blood rushed from his cheeks from shock "You…offered to die instead?" he gasped "But…how?"

Zoro gave a casual shrug, though he knew that the weight this story held was no meaningless thing "I survived. An impossible scenario that would have killed anyone else, I survived."

The look the child was giving him was nothing less than pure adulation, the glowing gaze of a boy who had finally found a hero. It made Zoro fidget uncomfortably, and the man ruffled Sora's head with more force than necessary if only to get those eyes off him. "So, what I'm trying to say is," he said after clearing his throat in discomfort "is that I know that it's not always about the strength of your physical body that can turn the balance in your favor, often a warrior is judged by the strength of his heart. You got it, kid?"

Sora pushed the large hand off to the side of his head, looking up through one eye at the swordsman and giving a stunning grin loaded with relief "I got it, promise."

"Good," Zoro ground out with a firm nod, "Now, let's go take care of that monster. Leon's probably dead already and it would be a shame if we can't at least make sure Yuffie gets his body."

"EHHHH?!"

Zoro looked down to see Sora giving him a look that he had originally thought Chopper owned the trademark to, but apparently not, because that boy couldn't appear more horrified even if he tried. To be honest, it was utterly adorable.

A large guffaw burst from the swordsman's mouth, and bubbled into a warm chuckle "I'm kidding, twerp."

"Oh, whew," Sora sighed, making Zoro snicker again.

"But seriously, though," the older man smirked "we really ought to take care of that thing."

"Right!" Sora reached for Zoro's hand and proceeded to tug him down the alleyway "First we have to get there."

"You don't need to hold my hand, it's a straight alleyway, you know."

"Zoro, I've only known you a little while, but I'm pretty sure you'd manage to get lost."

"Seriously?"

"Yep."

**I know its short, but I wanted to give you something, and I'm so sorry it took so long to update! **

**I graduate with my business degree in a little over three weeks, so hopefully I will have more time for writing!**

**For now at least, please REVIEW! And if there is anything anyone wants to see in particular with Zoro experiencing the worlds of Kingdom Hearts, please leave those in the reviews and I will seriously consider each one!**


End file.
